EU Court of Justice allows criminal prosecution for reposting RT videos — judgement

BRUSSELS, July 2. /TASS/. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has allowed criminal prosecution of individuals in EU countries who post Russia Today (RT) videos on open channels and websites, the CJEU ruling in a lawsuit against three German citizens for reposting RT videos on open platforms reads.

"In Germany, three persons are facing criminal proceedings for having broadcast, on several occasions, videos from the channel RT - Russia Today Germany on a website accessible to the public free of charge. Across the European Union, ‘operators’ are not permitted to broadcast the content of that channel because of the restrictive measures adopted against it," the court’s judgement states.

The court ruled that the EU sanctions ban on RT broadcasts "applies also to a website accessible to the public free of charge." The court ruled that "it is irrelevant whether or not the broadcasting of the prohibited content takes place in the course of an economic activity", and that the prohibition depends "neither on the extent nor on the duration of the broadcasting." Therefore, those distributing any RT materials bear full responsibility in Europe.